Dive Details

Location

Date

Sunday 22 April 2018

Time

9:02am - 10:38am

Details

I had a whole crowd with me today. Vicki and PJ wanted to see the robust ghostpipefish and Carol and Garry joined them. Daniel needed a buddy and wanted to see anglerfish, ghostpipefish and pygmy pipehorses. Trevor came down for a couple of dives. Roney and Dama were diving at the same time, too. Conditions looked pretty good, too.

We jumped in at The Leap: Daniel, Trevor and I from the low platform and the others from shelf. We grouped on the surface before descending. We headed at what I thought was around 30° but my Perdix compass was playing up again and kept reading 60-90°. We hit the sand line near Lucy and Bob Rock which was alright in the end. Visibility was only around 5 metres and there was particulate matter in the water. The water temperature was between 19 and 20°. There was not much surge but a gentle current from the incoming tide. We turned left and headed towards The Steps.

We swam past Seahorse Rock and on to the flat rocks with sponges. I found "Clyde", the weedy seadragon, just to the south-east of the overhang. I found another weedy on the outside of the first of the flat rocks and a third between the flat rocks.

We continued on to Southern Cross Rock. I found a yellow male and a white female pygmy pipehorses almost facing each other in the Carijoa. I tried to get them nose to nose but they were moving out of sync. I showed the others before moving on.

We swam into Seadragon Alley. I tried to find the juvenile weedy seadragon but cracked under the pressure. Towards the end of Seadragon Alley I did manage to find the dark robust ghostpipefish. I couldn't find her partner. I showed PJ and Vicki, as well as Daniel and Trevor. There was also a weedy seadragon there. Roney swam up and told me there was another back a little ways so I followed him (thinking Daniel and Trevor had seen me). Roney showed me a pretty little green robust ghostpipefish.

I swam back to the dark robust ghostpipefish expecting Daniel and Trevor to be there photographing it, but they were gone. I assumed they had gone with PJ and Vicki like I had suggested in the briefing. I took a few more photographs of the dark robust ghostpipefish before continuing.

After the end of Seadragon Alley I looked for the red Stigmatopora sp. pipefish but couldn't find them. There was a weedy seadragon there so I took photos of it instead.

I continued along the sand line and just past Big Rock I bumped into Roney and Dama. I went to the rock below Hand Rock and the white/pink red-fingered anglerfish was still there. The white male pygmy pipehorse was also at the base of the rock in his usual spot.

I headed up the reef and spotted the juvenile bridled triggerfish. I then found the one-eyed White's seahorse on her rock.

I continued along the top of the reef to New Basket Star Rock. I found the basket star on the red chimney sponge another 5 or so metres along. I then bumped into Daniel. I took him back towards BIg Rock to show him the white/pink anglerfish and the white male pygmy pipehorse.

We headed back via the seahorse, which I pointed out to Daniel, and on past Diversity Rock. Between Diversity Rock and Little Big Rock I saw a Nembrotha sp. nudibranch and showed Daniel.

Behind Little Big Rock I showed Daniel the white female pygmy pipehorse. She was posing perfectly in the purple sponge. I then took him to the yellow red-fingered anglerfish. He was low on air so he left me here.

I swam back to Little Big Rock and took some more photographs of the white female pygmy pipehorse and then looked for the two cryptic pygmy pipehorses on the rock behind it. I found them both, the female first and then the male.

I checked out the rocks with sponges as I headed towards the boulders hoping to find anglerfishes but found none. At the boulders I ascended to 5 metres and started my safety stop as I swam to Split Rock. I finished my safety stop at Split Rock and swam to the exit. I stayed underwater right to the exit avoiding a couple of divers swimming in on the surface. The exit was easy.

Buddy

Trevor Howard, Daniel Livings, PJ, Vicki, Carol, Garry

Seas

Slight

Visibility

3 to 5 metres

Duration

96 minutes

Maximum depth

20.7 m

Average depth

13.6 m

Water temperature

19.3°C

Dive Profile from Citizen Hyper Aqualand

Tides at Botany Bay AEST

Note that tides at dive site may vary from above location.

High

12:46am

1.75m

Low

7:42am

0.45m

High

1:47pm

1.31m

Low

7:23pm

0.70m